Egyptian army: 16 terrorists killed, 34 arrested in Sinai operation

Sixteen terrorists were killed, thirty four arrested and sixty six hideouts were destroyed in a major security operation launched by Egypt on Friday in north and central of Sinai, the Egyptian military stated on Sunday, the first casualties in a campaign aimed at crushing “terrorism” in the troubled island.

The military launched an operation called ‘Sinai 2018’ one month and half before the Presidential elections, building-up air and naval troops, inside and outside Sinai, the stronghold of the Egyptian branch of Daesh terrorists, responsible for a large string of bloody attacks in the country.

The military also said in a statement last Friday” the military movements focused on north and central Sinai, but extended to other parts in Delta and Al-Dhahir desert, to the west of Nile valley.”

In the most detailed statement since the beginning of the operations, a spokesman of the armed forces called ‘Tamer Rifae’ stated on Sunday, “the elimination of 16 extremists, and arresting 34 others.

He added “that came during conducting a thoroughly search and raids on all axes, towns and villages in north and central Sinai.

He also referred to “the air force destroyed 66 targets used by terrorists in hiding and escaping from the operations being done, destroying 11 SUVs and 31 motorcycles as well.

The militant spokesman explained that “the army destroyed a field planet used by terrorists to make explosives as well as to a media center found inside it many of computers, wireless devices and six of bhang and poppy plantations drug.

‘Rifae’ said that the helicopter carrier Mistral, which Cairo has bought two of them from France in 2015, took place in the landing of troops of the Marine special units on the coast of Al-Arish, the capital of North Sinai governorate.

On 24 November last year, the North Sinai region witnessed a massacre in which more than 300 people dead inside a mosque in a southern town of Al-Arish called ‘Al-Rawdha’ in an attack is the bloodiest in Egypt’s modern history.